Wood pole roof



June 21, 1955 R, PlTTMAN 2,710,996

WOOD POLE ROOF Filed July 16, 1951 IN VEN TOR.

United States Patent This invention relates to water-proof roofssuitable for application to the tops of wood piling and wood poles orposts.

It is commonly recognized that the exposed crossgrain top of any woodmember checks from shrinkage as the moisture evaporates from thematerial, and that the checks become progressively enlarged withalternate freezing and thawing of the water filling the checks.Commercial treating methods fail to penetrate the heart wood of a woodpole or piling, and this part of the member readily decays in thepresence of moisture conducive to the growth of wood-decaying fungi.Even the treated sap wood may decay if passage of water therethroughwashes out the toxins of the preservative.

The broad objective of the invention is the closure of the top of thewood member so as to avoid entrance of any water via the ever-presentseason checks. The specific object is to provide a roof which may bequickly fitted to pole tops which vary widely as to both size and shape,such fitting to be accomplished without cutting or tearing of theroofing member. As far as I have been able to discover, there has notheretofore been described or used any roof which does not require eithercutting or tearing of the roofing member in order to effect asatisfactory roof from the standpoints of effectiveness and neatworkmanship.

With the above and such other objects in view as appear from thedescription, my invention resides in a new construction of the roofcomponents, and a novel combination of the components, as hereinafterdescribed and particularly pointed out in the claims appended.

Fig. l is a top view of the roof.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view ofthe roof, taken along the line 2-2 of Fig.1.

Fig. 3 is a bottom view of the roof.

Fig. 4 is a top view of the roof as it appears after application to theend of a wood pole.

Fig. 5 is a side elevational view of the roof following its applicationto a wood pole.

More in detail, the roof consists of two integral pieces of flexiblewater-proof sheet material, which are rigidly united by means of acentrally positioned fastener. Depending upon the duty required, thesheet material may be impregnated roofing paper, a thermoplasticmaterial, or very thin sheet copper, aluminum or zinc, the principalconsideration from the application standpoint being only that thematerial is waterproof or rainproof and flexible.

The top member of the roof includes a central portion which is of suchsize that it may only partially cover the end of the wood member towhich the roof is to be applied. Extending radially outward from thecentral portion 10 are a plurality of integral peripherally spacedsubstantially rectangular portions 11.

The bdttom member includes the central portion 12, also of a size toincompletely cover the end of the Patented June .21, 195.5

wood member to which it is to be applied, and has extending radiallyoutwardly from the central portio 12 a plurality of integralperipherally spaced substantially trapezoidal portions 13. The outsidediameter of the lower member; i. e. the distance measured through theoutwardly extended trapezoidal portions 13 determines the largestdiameter pole top for which the roof is adapted, and the diameter of thecentral body portion 10 of the top member determines the smallestdiameter pole top for which the roof is adapted; the roof will fit allintermediate sizes.

The number of rectangular portions 11 is the Same as the number oftrapezoidal portions 1.3, and as i1- lustrated, both the width andlength of each of the portions 11 are greater than the correspondingdimensions of each space between the portions 13. The roof is assembledby first coaxially positioning the central portions 10 and 12, and thenrotating one member with respect to the other as may be necessary toassure that each rectangular portion covers an intervening space betweenadjacent trapezoidal portions, following which operation the members areunited by means of the centrally positioned rivet 15.

To provide slope to assure drainage from the roof, the rivet 15 isprovided with head located on the bottom side of the roof such that thehighest portion of the roof, when applied to a flat top pole or piling,will be the top end 14 of the rivet 15, all other portions of the roofsloping outwardly from this elevated point.

Figs. 4 and 5 are respectively plan and elevational views of the roof inplace on a pole top 17. As will be apparent from the illustrations, theapplication of the roof consists simply in centering it on the pole top,bending the rectangular tabs 11 down over the vertical surface of thepole, and fastening the tabs wherever they may position by the nails 16.The tabs 11 are extended beyond the outside of the bottom member toallow for fastening, and as they are bent down, the portions 13 arenecessarily carried along to their respective desired positionsalongside the pole.

The number of outwardly extending portions, and their width and spacing,is preferably chosen such that close conformity to the pole of thebent-down portions is assured, and the space between the trapezoidalportions 13 is made wide enough to avoid overlapping of the latterportions .when bent over the edge of the pole top. A convenientconstruction suitable for poles in common use for supporting overheadelectrical conductors is a roof in which the center portions have adiameter of 8 inches, the tabs of the bottom member extend outwardly 3inches, and the tabs of the top member extend outwardly 5 inches. Thetabs of both members are spaced degrees apart, making 12 in number; therespective edges of each tab of the bottom member define a 21 degreeangle and the adjacent edges of adjoining tabs a 9 degree angle, and thewidth of the tabs of the topmember is 1 /2 inches. So designed, andassembled as above described, this roof, without modification, may beneatly and effectively fitted over pole tops varying from 24 inches toinches in perimeter.

It may also be noted that the roof is not limited to application tocircular pole tops, but will equally well cover elliptical or otherout-of-round tops. The importance of this consideration resides in thefact that purely circular pole tops are practically non-existent. It maybe further noted that a very inexpensive roof, both as to cost ofmanufacture and as to cost of application, is provided by theconstruction described.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination, a wood pole and a roof adapted for applicationwithout alteration to pole tops which ICC differ in shape and/or size,comprising abutting top and bottom members of fiat flexible rainproofmaterial each of which includes a central portion smaller than the topto be covered, the central portion of the bottom member having aplurality of integral peripherally spaced bottom portions extendingoutwardly therefrom and the central portion of the top member having anequal number of integral peripherally spaced top portions extendingoutwardly therefrom beyond the outer edges of said bottom portions, saidtop porlions covering the spaces separating said bottom portions, andfastening means positioned in the central portions and joining saidmembers, the number and spacing of said integral portions being suchthat said portions substantially conform to the outside of the poleincluding that portion of the pole top not covered by the centralportions of the roof.

2. In combination, a wood pole and a pre-cut pole roof adapted to fitpole tops unlike in size and shape, comprising abutting top and bottommembers of flat flexible rainproof material each of which includes acentral portion smaller than the top to be covered, the central portionof the bottom member having a plurality of integral peripherally spacedsubstantially trapezoidal portions extending outwardly therefrom and thecentral portion of the top member having an equal number of integralperipherally spaced substantially rectangular portions extendingoutwardly therefrom beyond the outer edges of said trapezoidal portions,said rectangular portions covering the spaces separating saidtrapezoidal portions, and fastening means positioned in the centralportions and joining said members, the number and spacing of saidintegral portions being such that said portions substantially conform tothe outside of the pole including that portion of the pole top notcovered by the central portions of the roof.

3. In combination, a wood pole and a roof adapted for applicationwithout alteration to pole tops varying in size and shape, for the topof a wood pole, comprising a top member and a bottom member each formedfrom a sheet of flexible rainproof material, said members each includinga central portion only partially covering the end to be roofed and anequal number of circurnferentially spaced portions extending outwardlytherefrom, each of the outwardly extending portions of said top memberbeing greater in width than the space between the outwardly extendingportions of said bottom member and extending equidistantly beyond theperiphery of said bottom member, and fastening means for holding saidmembers in coaxial and abutting parallel relationship, the outwardlyextending portions of said top member being positioned over theuncovered end surface of said pole and extended downwardly therealongbeyond the spaces between the outward- 1y extending portions of saidbottom member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,973,861 Walsh Sept. 18, 1934 2,230,392 Storms Feb. 4, 1941 FOREIGNPATENTS 141,468 Switzerland 1930 v. r-- F. It

